Rotary cutter for sugar-cane and the like.



J. MEINECKE.

ROTARY CUTTER FO-R SUGAR CANE AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY I3. 1916.

Patented Feb. 27, 1917.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Fete of; wt?

spplication'fileei may 13, 1916. Serial Ito-37,819.

, Paia, Maui, Territory of Hawaii, have inaiid the like; and I do hereby declare the] vented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotai 'Cutters for Sugar-Cane following to be afull, clear, andexact de- ;fis'ci'ipt-ion of the invention, such as will enehle others skilled in the art to which it appertailis to make and use the same.

:lliis invention relates to rotary cutters, such as used for cutting and shredding sugar-cane and the like, and has for its ob- .jeet to provide an improved cutter of this 'type which is so constructed that it will more efiiciently cut on shred the sugar-cane 01' other material operated upon than outters of the type heretofore employed.

The invention is-illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which F'gure 1 is a side elevati proved cutter; y

Fig. 2 is an edge view of the cutter with the hub represented in section; and

Fig. 3 is an enlarged edge View, partly in section, more clearly illustrating the shape of the knife-blade seats and their'effect in causing the extremities of the knife-blades to assume.,an offset relation with respect to 1 each other and with respect to the longitudinal axis of theh'ilb. The improved cutter comprises in its preferred form, a hub 1 having a central opening which adapts the hub tor use on a cutter shaft, such as shown at 2. ihe hub may be secured to the shaft in any suitable manner, such as by means oi the key 3.

The hub 1 carries a plurality of knifeblades having the general shape and con-* struction clearly shown in Fig. 1. Any suitable number. of these blades may be empl0yed,'but preferably there are four of the same, two diametrically opposite blades 4. and L being secured to one cheek 5 of the hub, and the other two diametrically opposite blades 6 and 6 being secuiedto the 0pposite cheek 7 of the hub. The knives may be secured to the hub by any appropriate means, such as the bolts 8. The provision of four knife-blades and the mounting of the two pairs of blades on opposite cheeks of the hub result in a Well-balanced cutter, but

as will later be; seem-these features of con struct on need not be adhered to, as the cuton' of the im- I spaced relation, or, in other words, assume an ofi'set relation with respect to each other and with respect to the longitudinalsxisot the hub. Otherwise stated, the extiemities of the knife-blades will lie in different planes passing through the axis of the hiib.

This is accomplished in the present iustouce by mounting the lmife bladesin provided in the hub cheeks and. so shaping; all ,of said seats that the longitudinal axes of ,the blades will be so :disp-osed with respect to the axis of the hub that the extremities of the blades will assume the relatioii above indicated. For instance, the hiades 6 end. 6' are mounted in sea ts 9 and 10, r spectively, the bottom surface of the seat 9 being substou tiully at right angles to the axis of the hub-i so that the blade (3 also assumes a. position at right angles to the axis of the hub and theseat 10 being so shaped that its bottom sur face will be slightly inclined witl'i respect to the axis of the hub, will result in an inclination-of the longitudinal axis of the blade 6, as indicated in 2 and 3, so that the extremities of the blades of the pair (5; 6 will fall in different; planes 0; be spaced from each other longitudinally of the hub axis, as clearly indicated in Fig. 3. Likewise, the blades 4 and 4' are mounted in seats 11 and 12, respectively, the seat 11 having-its bottom surface inclined ith-respect to the axis 01 the hub to cause the;

knife-blade 4 to assume the position indicated in Fig. 3, theiieby' bringing its eittremity into the props? spaced relatioh with respect to the exti'emity of the blade ('3. The

seat 12 has its bottom surface at i'ie'ht an-' 1 gles to the axis of the hub, so the blade 4: will also be at right angles to the axis oi the hub and so that the extremity oi the blade 4 Will assume the proper spaced relation with vrespect to the extremity of the act I tremities of the knives lie in different planes and are in spaced relation longitudinally of the hub axis.-

In practice, it is customary to mount a plurality of the hubs upon a single cutter shaft and wh'en a plurality of the present hubs are so positioned upon a single shaft, it is obvious that the extremities of all of the blades of all of the hubs maybe made to lie in dillerent planes and be in spaced re,- lation, the spacing between the extreu'iities of the blades being the same throughout the length of the shatt when the hubs are prop erly spaced on the shaft to bring about this result. It will now be noted that the four blades carried by anyone hub are capable of producing four successive cuts upon different portions 0* the material treated. The result is thatthe material is cut or shredded in a much more eiheient manner than has been possible with cutters as heretofore constructed. When the cutters are employed for cutting or shredding sugar-cane, it has been found desirable in practice to so dis pose the knife-blades as to bring their ere tren'iities in planes which are substantially seven-eighths of an inch apar The means herein disclosed for bringing the extremities of all of the blades carried by one hub into spaced relation is only one of a number of Ways in which this result n'iight be obtained and, tl'ierefoi-e I do not Wish to limit myself to the specific means herein shown and described.

Vl hat I claim isz- A, rotary eutsjer comprising a hub having a pair of cl eelis, each provided with a pair of knife-blade seats, and a lmiie-liilade mounted on each of said seats, one oi. the seats of each pair being in a plane at right angles to the hub axis and the other seat of each pair being" in a plane which is inclined with r spect to the hub axis to bring; the extremities of the blades into aoed relation longitudinally of the hub axis.

ln testimony whereof I aiiiX my signature.

JOSEPH li HCINECKE. 

